Gas turbine engines are used to power aircraft, watercraft, power generators, and the like. Gas turbine engines may include stationary components and rotating components. Stationary and rotating components in a gas turbine engine are often separated by a small gap. The small gap allows for variations in manufacturing tolerance of the adjacent components and for expansion/contraction of the components that occurs during operation of the gas turbine engine. The small gap may allow liquids and/or gasses to move between chambers of the gas turbine engine that are separated by the stationary and rotating components.
A seal may be positioned in the small gap between the stationary and rotating components to prevent the leakage of the liquids and/or gasses through the gap during operation of the gas turbine engine. The seal is sometimes made of graphitic carbon. Oxidation may occur in portions of the seal that are exposed to an oxygen containing environment, such as those portions not engaged with the rotating component. If oxidation occurs, the maintenance costs of operating the gas turbine engine may increase.